Poisonings

“Injuries are Predictable and Preventable”

Fact:

Medication in the home is the leading cause of poisoning in children. Small amounts of adult medication can be fatal to your child. Other causes of poisonings are household cleaners and personal care products, such as mouthwash and nail polish.

What Can I Do?

Keep all potential poisons locked up and out of reach of children. As your child grows, they become more active and can easily reach and open cabinets. Medicines, cleaning products and other poisons need to be locked in a place high up and out of your child's reach.

Store cleaning products in the home and garage out of reach and in their original containers.

Keep all medication in original child-resistant packaging.

When teaching children about medication, never refer to medicine as candy.

Always read the label and check the dosage each time you give or take medicine.

Learn the names of plants you have and get rid of any that are poisonous.

Ensure that ashtrays or glasses with alcoholic drinks in them are out of reach of children and emptied after use. A child can become very ill by a small amount of alcohol and can be poisoned by a cigarette butt.

When visitors come to your home, make sure they keep their purses and bags out of your child's reach. They may have medications or other unsafe products in them.

Keep the number of your local poison control centre near the phone. In the event that your child is potentially poisoned, contact you regional poison information centre. If you are in a province or territory that does not have a poison control centre, dial 911.